NUBIYAN TWIST - Chasing Shadows

The fifth Nubiyan Twist album is titled “Chasing Shadows”; in the two years since their previous work (“Find Your Flame”), the band has kept busy, both live and by releasing new music, whether it's the reworking of that previous record or the trail of singles and EPs that has led us to this new album, now available in full.

There isn't much left to discover about what's on this album, so there's little cause for surprise: the formula is the well-established Nubiyan Twist one, a refined crossover of afrobeat, jazz, hip-hop electronics and soul, honed over a decade of activity both in the studio and on stage. The group has always placed great emphasis on playing together, chasing that alchemy which algorithms and digital tools inevitably lose along the way; here the focus is on individual talent and technique, put at the service of the collective and skilfully steered by Tom Excell, the band's leader and producer. 

Compared to the previous record, on which the band also flirted with disco music, here it's afrobeat that takes centre stage, with the horn section (alto, tenor and baritone sax, plus trumpet) given plenty of room to push and drive the tracks; but hip-hop also leads the listener on the chase after shadows, thanks to the soft, sensual timbre of Eniola Idowu, featured on six of the eleven tracks. Idowu isn't the only guest; alongside her, the album features Malian star Fatoumata Diawara, jazz-funk keyboardist Joe Armon‑Jones, the legendary Patrice Rushen, Bootie Brown of The Pharcyde, Ghanaian rapper M.anifest and reggae/dancehall artist Mr Williamz.

Among the tracks, the already-mentioned “Chasing Shadows” stands out first and foremost as the conceptual axis of the album: co-written with Diawara, it's a multifaceted piece, at times more lively and choral, at times more intimate and spiritual; the rhythm section sustains a hypnotic pace, while strings and synth lines add a contemporary sheen without distorting its organic feel.

“How Far” is one of the moments given over to hip-hop: M.anifest rides an unstoppable groove, with saxophone and drum interjections recalling the most incendiary sessions of “Freedom Fables” (their 2021 album), but with a crisper mix and a more pronounced rhythmic presence. On “Message”, the contrast between Mr Williamz's cutting flow and Eniola's soft vocal line creates a play of stylistic opposites, almost as if to depict the dialectical relationship between generations and cultures. “Red Herring”, finally, is a moment of irony and awareness: amid electronic funk grooves and Bootie Brown's rap, an allegory emerges about the mental and media traps of the digital age, with a sound in which jazz and funk act as tools of creative resistance.

“Chasing Shadows” perhaps lacks the restless, combative tension of the previous record: it's a more relaxed album, one that gives more space and autonomy to the guests involved and seeks depth in the soul and hip-hop that spread over the afrobeat foundation.

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07/04/2026